Autism Society of America

The Autism Society of Southern Arizona is proud to be one of the 107 affiliates of the Autism Society of America.

History
The Autism Society was founded in 1965 by Bernard Rimland, Ph.D. His book, Infantile Autism: The Syndrome and Its Implications for a Neural Theory of Behavior, was written in late 1964 and was one of the first of its kind. In 1968, Ruth Sullivan, Ph.D., became the organization’s first elected president. Over the last 40 years, the Society has grown from a handful of parents into the leading source of information, research, reference and support on the autism spectrum. The Autism Society is the oldest and largest grassroots organization within the autism community.

The Autism Society began a nationwide awareness campaign in the early ’70s that was adopted by Congress in 1984 and strengthened by the release of the autism awareness ribbon in 1999. The Society launched a project to study brain tissue in 1976 and formed a Foundation focused on applied research in 1996. The first national conference on autism was convened by the Autism Society in 1969 and our organization is proud to have had individuals with autism serve on its Board of Directors and in other key decision-making roles since the ’80s.

The Autism Society’s national office welcomes your phone calls, e-mails and letters. Our staff is ready and willing to answer your questions and provide you with the best and most up-to-date information possible. We do our best to respond to requests in a timely fashion.

Please keep in mind that the Autism Society does not provide direct assistance, such as treatment or legal services. We do, however, provide information and referral to many services and supports across the country.